Hello Reader,
Your marketing team of 20 just became a team of 6. AI handles the rest. Everything's running smoothly until your one remaining human sends a tone-deaf email to your biggest client. They fire you. Not because your AI wasn't good enough, but because your human wasn't.
I've been wrestling with this scenario as I observe the AI transformation happening across industries. AI agents are already replacing entire job functions, from legal research to medical documentation. Entry-level positions - the traditional stepping stones for young professionals - are disappearing. Companies that once needed 500 employees now operate with 30.
This connects directly to everything I've observed in workplace etiquette and professionalism. As companies become leaner and more strategic about human talent, there's never been a better time to invest in what makes you irreplaceably human. The professionals who understand this shift aren't just surviving - they're becoming indispensable.
When Workplace Etiquette Becomes your Hiring Lifeline
This is the world we're entering. When you're operating with skeleton crews, every person on your team becomes a critical point of failure - or success. When you can only afford to keep the essential humans, you can't afford to keep the wrong humans.
Just last month, I fought a traffic ticket I got while visiting NYC using AI - what would have required hiring a paralegal was handled in seconds, taking me from 2 demerit points to zero. That's the speed at which traditional jobs are disappearing.
The Four Qualities to Screen For Now
- Trust-Building at Light Speed - Remember the last contractor who joined your team and somehow had everyone's respect by day three? That's what you're looking for now. In today's increasingly project-based economy, your people need to walk into a room (virtual or otherwise) and immediately signal competence, reliability, and emotional intelligence. They understand that their LinkedIn photo matters, their camera setup matters, and how they handle that awkward moment when someone's unmuted matters.
- Leading Through Uncertainty - You know that person on your team who stays calm when everything's on fire? Who can explain to a panicked client why their project timeline just shifted without making it sound like the end of the world? That's gold now. When entire industries are reshaping faster than your quarterly planning cycle, you need people who can shepherd others through the chaos while keeping everyone's sanity intact.
- Human-AI Integrator - This is the person who knows when the AI's marketing copy is brilliant and when it sounds like a robot wrote it. They can explain to the CEO why we're overriding the algorithm's recommendation without making it sound like we don't trust our technology investment. They're the bridge between "the computer says" and "here's what actually makes sense for our business."
- Strategic Relationship Management Think of your best salesperson - not the one with the flashiest pitch, but the one whose clients call them personally when they have problems. That's relationship capital, and when your business model depends on networks instead of departments, these are the people who keep the whole ecosystem running smoothly.
The Bottom Line
The AI revolution isn't just changing what work gets done - it's fundamentally altering what it means to be professionally valuable. Technical skills will always matter, but they're becoming commoditized. Your professionalism, emotional intelligence, and ability to navigate complex human dynamics are becoming your most valuable assets.
The question isn't whether AI will change your industry - it's whether you'll be ready to be one of the few humans left standing when it does.
The future belongs to those who can be irreplaceably, authentically, and professionally human.
A Personal Note
We've run into some snags with our upcoming launch, so we'll be delayed by a few weeks. But as you've just read, sometimes the most human thing you can do is take the time to get it right rather than rushing to meet an arbitrary deadline.
If this resonates with someone you know - whether they're wondering how to stay relevant in their career, managing team performance and development, or just trying to figure out what professional skills matter now - feel free to forward this their way.
Warm regards,
Trina Boos
Founder & CEO
Boost Academy of Excellence
